Afraid
by I'm always lost.Damn
Summary: Mr. Lancer sets a spur of the moment essay. The assignment: Describe your fears. The teacher is shocked when Danny actually completes essay but something’s amiss. The content is worrying and now he has to confront the teenager, whether he wants to or not
1. Chapter 1

Afraid – Chapter One

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom

Summary: Mr. Lancer sets a spur of the moment essay. The assignment: Write about what your fears. The teacher is shocked when Danny actually hands in his essay but something's amiss. The content of it is worrying and now he has to confront the teenager, whether he wants to or not. 

* * *

Lancer massaged his temples as he picked up the next essay in the pile. He was only a quarter of the way through and he already had a headache – mainly because he kept reading about people's horrible experiences with spiders, bees and other such creatures. He hadn't realized how many of his students feared insects. Miss Manson's essay, however, had served to amuse him for a few moments. It was obviously an essay made to mock the topic (really, who feared pink and dresses and sunlight of all things?) but the quality of the writing was excellent. Mr. Foley's essay, on the other hand, was almost as amusing (it described a world without technology) but the writing was not up to par with Miss Manson's.

Sighing, he glanced at the name scribbled at the top and was pleasantly surprised to find '_Daniel Fenton_' written there. It seemed that Mr. Fenton had actually managed to hand in his homework – for once.

_Fears; they're something everyone has. Some people are afraid of spiders, others of heights. There are some seemingly ridiculous fears in the world too. As an individual, I too have my own fears._

_Being alone. Solitude. Isolation. Three different ways of describing my first fear. I may only have a few close friends but I'm not alone. Sam and Tucker – best friends for life. You won't find more loyal friends than them. My sister, Jazz, she's always there too. She's overprotective and annoying, but she's still there, she still cares. My parents; one could say that they aren't good parents, that they're neglectful. It does seem that way sometimes – they're so obsessed with their work. But they would drop everything for Jazz and I. How could I feel alone with people willing to do that for me? I don't know what would happen if they left one day. I only know that I would hate it, that I would be scared. And alone. Maybe I would go insane, become something I hate. I did once._

_Number two: failing to protect people. Unbelievable but true. It may seem like I've never done anything to protect others. It doesn't really matter if it seems like that to others; it only matters that they're safe. If one day I was to fail, I think that the guilt would be too much. It would consume me. I would probably do something I would regret. It's horrible, guilt. _

_Becoming evil. This fear is always in the back of my mind, reminding me of what could happen. I've seen it once, it happened to someone I knew. It was horrible. He was guilt-ridden, depressed. His depression turned to anger and then to hate. I loathed what he became. I loathed it…and it disturbed me. I never want that to happen again. Every time I feel intense ire bubbling up in me, I work to force it down. I shudder to think what might happen if I ever failed. _

_Myself, my being. I have the capability to do many things. Everyone does, really, but somehow it's more dangerous with me. It's disturbing to think about it. I could kill you so easily. I could break you, scar you, torture you. I could do so much. And what if I did? It would be terrifying. I can't sleep sometimes. The thoughts become too much. I really hate myself sometimes. _

_Fears; they're scary, aren't they? They should be though. Otherwise, how could they be fears? I have several, but then, I suppose you do too. _

Lancer gently placed his pen down on the desk. He wasn't quite sure what to make of this. It didn't _sound_ like Daniel. But it was in his handwriting and his name was at the top. It couldn't be Daniel, though, it couldn't. Daniel had never seemed so…dark.

But maybe you just having been paying enough attention, a small voice in the back of his head commented.

It was concerning. Something just wasn't _right_. It sounded like Daniel had something going on around him and it didn't sound good. Was it affecting his health? Maybe, the boy had looked more tired recently. But couldn't that just be him staying up playing video games? He'd been looking paler too, though. Did his parents know? Probably not.

Lancer sighed and sat back in his chair. What to do now?

* * *

This was inspired when I read someone else's fanfiction; there was a small section when Mr. Lancer set this essay. I thought it would be cool to actually write though so I did. 

Edit: I changed this slightly in the hopes of improving the poor quality of writing.


	2. Chapter 2

Afraid – Chapter Two

* * *

Danny Fenton was walking to school with his two best friends, Sam and Tucker. They were currently discussing their most recent essay. The topic hadn't been hard as they could make up anything they wanted. In fact, Sam and Tucker had both described outrageous fears. Although one could argue that they had been telling the truth…

"Wait, wait, are you saying you wrote _two_ essays?" asked Tucker incredulously.

"Yup," replied Danny, chuckling slightly at his friend's outraged reaction.

"Are you crazy? How did you find the time?! _Why_ would you want to?" Spluttered Tucker. He really couldn't believe his friend sometimes. Sure, Danny was half-ghost which was strange in itself but willingly writing two essays? That was just insane.

"I really wanted to get some stuff off my chest, Tucker, and the best way was to write it down."

Sam chuckled at Danny's unperturbed expression; the conversation was actually quite amusing. She cut in before Tucker could respond, "So what did you write in the first one?"

"Oh, just some random stuff, thought it might amuse him."

"And the other one?"

Danny mumbled something under his breath.

"What was that?" asked Tucker as he fiddled on his PDA.

"I said some stuff about my real fears, just as a release of sorts," whispered Danny.

His friends stopped walking to stare at him. Noticing their lack of movement, Danny stopped to look at them questioningly. Tucker looked shocked and Sam seemed to think he was crazy. Rolling his eyes, Danny gave them a look saying 'is there something on my face?' and carried on walking towards their school. The other two quickly got over the shock and caught up to him.

"What were you thinking, writing about that?" hissed Sam.

"Relax, I didn't give it in," replied Danny. He opened his bag and started to rummage through it. Eventually, he took out a crumpled up sheet of paper and handed it to the goth. Both Sam and Tucker started to read it only to have their eyes widened. They stared at Danny, looking almost shell-shocked.

"What?" he asked.

"Danny…this essay says your biggest fear is banana peels…" said Sam. Danny noticed her hands trembling slightly.

"Dude…I think you gave in the wrong essay…" whispered Tucker.

Danny was starting to feel faint, he couldn't concentrate properly. Leaning against a lamppost he quickly began to think over the situation. If he had the fake essay, then that meant Mr. Lancer had the real one, which meant…

"Mr. Lancer knows about _it_ now." stated Sam.

"I guess he does," Danny managed to croak out.

"It's going to be hard having to face him," said Tucker. Danny just stayed silent and slowly carried on to the school. His two friends shared a look and followed him. Who knew what awaited them in the building that lay ahead.

* * *

Thank you to all my reviewers, and the fanfiction that inspired this was "My Strength, My Weakness," by Manzanitta. You should seriously read it, the quality of writing is outstanding. I hope this chapter does not disappoint anybody. Sorry if it does.

Top of Form

Bottom of Form


	3. Banana Peels

The Banana Peel Essay

Disclaimer: I don't own 'Danny Phantom'.

* * *

Danny was thinking. He was thinking about what to write. What should his fake fear be? Then it hit him. It hit him like…a submarine falling out of a bus window.

_The purpose of this essay was to write about my fear. I have two main fears. The first one is banana peels! They are evil incarnate! I know what they're planning. Those yellow peels, they're just waiting for the right moment to strike. You could just be walking along, minding your own business and then…BAM…you're on your back out cold. I know what I'm talking about, I watch Saturday morning cartoons! It always happens. Even I've experienced it. _

_I was the ripe, young age of six. I was in the park, swinging on the swings, when suddenly, I noticed a yellow peel. Being the curious young explorer I was; I went to check it out. I was looking at it for some time until I was called over for food. I ran to the sweet, sweet aroma of chocolate only to find myself in deep, deep pain. I already knew who the culprit was; that evil, evil banana peel. I could practically feel the smirk it was wearing! I didn't sleep that night, the embarrassment still haunted me. Ever since then I have feared banana peels. I also stay away from anything yellow._

…_Not that I'm paranoid or anything._

_My second fear is old people. All those wrinkles and oil spots are too much. The way they pinch your cheeks (on your face that is) causes too much pain to endure. They also seem to like bananas; they must be in league with the banana peels! Whenever an old person comes into the room I run out screaming. I try to avoid them as much as possible. That might explain why I'm always late to your classes, hint hint. _

_I can't take stories about how it used to be in the old days. I DON'T CARE!! This isn't the old days; they should all get a life or something. I'm not even going to go into detail about those false teeth. I had to TOUCH some once! I never lived that down…_

Danny sat back in his chair satisfied with his work. He was sure to get an 'A' without revealing anything. His essay was pure genius.

"Danny, dear, come down for dinner!" called Maddie.

Ah, yes, time for the sweet, sweet chocolate.

* * *

Poor delusional Danny. This is just an interlude about the fake essay. I just had the urge to write it and here it is. I hope you enjoyed it.

Edit: Nothing really change in this..interlude chapter. I couldn't salvage anything from this horrible piece of writing.


	4. Chapter 3

Afraid - Chapter Three

* * *

Danny was hyperventilating. Did Mr. Lancer know? Did now despise Danny? Was he going to tell everyone?

_Ok, calm down Danny, there's no way to know for sure if Mr. Lancer actually knows. If I'm lucky, he'll think it's a joke and just give me a detention. But then, when have I ever been lucky?_

Danny continued to brood.

* * *

Lancer was walking to his classroom; he wasn't really paying attention to what was going on around him, though. No, he was too busy thinking about what to do when last period came; Daniel Fenton was in his English lesson then. He was supposed to be returning the essays. Normally, that would be fine, but this time he had Daniel's strangely personal one. To be honest, Lancer didn't even know why Daniel had even given this essay in. Was it a mistake? Was it meant only for Daniel's eyes? If so, how was he going to give the essay back without causing an awkward rift between the two of them for the rest of the year? Not that there wasn't already an awkward rift…

But then again, hadn't Mr. Fenton said he was glad that he'd set the topic at the end of the essay? Didn't that mean he was supposed to have read it? He sighed, everything was just so confusing.

"Hey, L–man!" called a voice.

"I thought I told you not to call me that Kain," Lancer replied. He turned around to see his fellow teacher, Kain McGellen. He was quite short, with ebony hair and obsidian eyes. Despite his age (43 years as of last week) he still acted like a child (much like a certain Jack Fenton…).

"Aww, but I've always called you 'L–man'."

Lancer rolled his eyes, "That may be true but I don't have to like it."

"Anyway, what's with the thoughtful face? It makes you look constipated," asked Kain. Lancer blushed in embarrassment. Trust Kain to make a comment like that.

"Must you say that every time I think near you? As for why I'm thinking, it's about a student," answered Lancer.

"Ohohoho! Don't you know paedophilia is illegal?" laughed the other man.

"Arrghh! Not in that way you perverted maniac!" raged the poor English teacher. The dark haired man just laughed while looking at the blushing teacher. He knew there was something troubling him, he wasn't sure what it was, but he was glad he took his mind off it, if only for a few seconds.

Mr Lancer took a breath and spoke again, "It's about the essay he wrote, the content…I can't reveal it to you (it's against student-teacher confidentiality) but I can tell you that it worries me," he frowned but continued, "It tells me that he has more problems, many more than I could've imagined." By now both had reached their destination.

"I don't know if there's much I can do to help, but know that I'll always be here to offer advice," Kain's smile turned into a smirk and a glint appeared in his eyes, "of course, if you ever want to pursue that relationship with that kid…"

"KAIN!" yelled an outraged English teacher.

* * *

Danny slammed his head on the table. He had English next and Tucker and Sam weren't going to be there. He groaned.

"Come on Danny, I'm sure it won't be that bad. I bet Mr. Lancer didn't realise what you were writing about," Sam said, trying to reassure him. Tucker hastily agreed. Danny just kept his head on the table. Sam and Tucker exchanged looks.

"How about, you try and see if he knows about you-know-what?" asked Tucker.

"Yeah, then you'll know how to act around him, if he knows, show that you know he knows, if he doesn't, tell him it was a joke," advised Sam. Danny's head still remained on the table. The other two sighed.

"Maybe we should leave you alone for a bit." Said Sam and the Goth and Techno-freak left.

Danny lifted his head up. By now, most people had left the cafeteria in favour of the grass outside. Not him though, he remained wit his untouched lunch. He was too worried to eat. He sighed. Maybe Sam was right; maybe he should try and work out if Lancer really knew. He sighed again.

"Hey kid, what's with all the sighing?" asked a voice from behind him. The person the voice belonged to sat down beside him. Danny turned his head slightly to look at the man.

"Hey Mr McGellen," he said.

* * *

Ooooo, looks like Kain is on friendly terms with Danny, how will this affect the plot? Hmm, looks like Mr. Lancer doesn't actually know what the secret is. Danny will have to watch his words, make sure he doesn't accidentally slip up.

I'm actually quite ashamed with how short this came out but I guess it'll have to do. I seem to have a problem with writing long chapters. I need some opinions, should I bring Vlad in? If so, should he be evil or should I create a father-son bond between him and Danny?


	5. Chapter 4

Afraid - Chapter Four

* * *

Kain McGellen had always prided himself for being able to relate with students. When he was a teenager he knew he wanted to be a teacher. He wanted to be the teacher the kids saw as a friend rather than someone unapproachable and distant. So, after university, he searched through city after city for the perfect teaching position but with no luck. No luck, that is, until he visited one location in particular – Amity Park. He made his way to Casper High where he found himself at gunpoint.

Shocking, no?

There he was, being threatened by a fourteen year old student with a gun and he didn't even have the job yet.

Instead of panicking, Kain allowed the teen to slowly back away from the police while bringing him along for the ride. Once out of sight, the teen put the gun away and made to run for it – he didn't make it very far. Kain grabbed the boy's arm and pulled him to the ground in a sitting position. At 29 years, Kain had little experience with this kind of situation, but that didn't stop him.

The boy was trembling in Kain's grip – he was obviously terrified. Kain asked the teen why he had the police after him. The teen didn't answer. Kain, sensing that he wasn't going to get an answer, started to tell the teen some jokes. The boy was shocked by this turn of events and eventually found himself quietly laughing with the man. Kain asked the teen again. This time, the boy – who's name was found to be Mark – told Kain that he'd been found in the possession of drugs. Kain was shocked at first, but remembering his own teen years, found himself asking who the drugs really belonged to. Mark had then openly gaped at Kain but eventually gained the willpower to explain that a bully in the year above him had pushed the drugs in his hands before rushing off to get the headmistress who then called the police. Mark had panicked and punched an officer in the face before grabbing the man's gun and speeding out of the school where he'd bumped into Kain.

Without any hesitation, Kain told the teen to return to the school and turn himself in. Mark had once again tried to get away but Kain calmly explained to him that it was better to explain the situation to the police without having to be dragged back – oh, and he wanted to check that hot policewoman out again. The teen once again found himself smiling and made his way back to the school with Kain.

It turned out that the bully was notorious for being reported for drugs so when Mark told the police the story, they had no trouble realising who the real culprit was. The bully's locker was searched and once more drugs were found it was decided that Mark was innocent and free to go (although he was to never threaten anyone with a gun again).

Spotting the opportunity at hand, Kain asked the headmistress if there were any teaching positions available. The woman having recognised Kain as the man that had convinced the student to return, decided to give him a trial job. The trial never ended.

So Kain McGellen became the History teacher of Casper High and the friend of the students (although the man's perverted ways did cause a few of the girls to keep their distance).

Then he met Daniel Fenton.

Daniel was an enigma to Kain, the boy was bullied, had low grades and was unpopular but had never really had anything to show for it (apart from the bruises he received from Mr. Baxter). That was until a few months ago. Daniel had come into the school late more often with black bags under his eyes and his grades were dropping. Kain couldn't understand the sudden change so he'd approached the boy. They had talked quite often and could even be considered friends but Kain still didn't have any answers, only more questions.

One day, having just tried and succeeded (sort of) to trick his best friend, L-man, into telling him what was bothering him (something about some kid's essay), he found Daniel sighing over and over again in the cafeteria – he wouldn't have been surprised if the boy had started banging his head against it (although, maybe he already had).

"Hey kid, what's with all the sighing?" asked Kain as he approached the teen from behind before sitting down next to him.

"Hey Mr. McGellen," replied Danny as he turned his head to look at the man.

Kain put on a grin, "Are you going to answer me or am I going to have to give you a lecture on the Treaty of Versailles?" That caught the boy's attention.

"It's nothing really, Mr. McGellen, it's just about a piece of homework…"

"Did your dad mistake it for fudge again?"

"No…although I wish he had, it would have been so much easier."

"Ok, now I'm worried, you wish your dad had eaten your homework?"

Danny glared, "Why are you so annoying?"

"Why are you so depressed?" retorted the teacher.

"Ah, touché."

"…You know 'touché'?"

"…I hate you."

"Is that any way to talk to your teacher?"

"You don't even teach me History," deadpanned the teen.

There was a short silence as both parties tried to think of something to say.

"Sooo….are you going to tell me what's bothering you?" asked Kain.

Danny sighed, "You're not going to leave me alone until I do, are you?"

"Kain beamed at him, "Nope!"

"…Don't sound so happy," said started Danny, "anyway, like I said, it's about a piece of homework. We had to write an essay, you see, and it was about what we're afraid of. I didn't want to write about my real fears (it's kind of personal) but I really needed to vent about them so I wrote two essays, one with fake fears and the other with my real fears," Kain nodded in understanding, "the point is, I gave in the wrong essay, I gave in my real fears and now Mr. Lancer is bound to have read them!"

"Ohhhh, so it was Mr. Lancer who set the essay," commented Kain. Danny clasped a hand over his mouth.

"I shouldn't have said that," groaned the ebony haired teen.

"Wait…it was Mr. Lancer who set the essay?! Oh damn…" gasped Kain in realisation.

Was Danny the student Mr. Lancer had mentioned earlier? Kain let a menacing grin slip onto his face, if Danny was the student…well, there was a lot he could do with this…

* * *

It was Danny's last period of the day – English with Mr Lancer. Said teacher was currently giving out the essay's he'd set the week before. Danny had his head in his hands, this was it, Mr Lancer was bound to have read the essay, he was bound to have made the connections! What was he going to do?

A shadow fell over Danny's desk – Mr Lancer's shadow to be precise. The teacher cleared his throat to gain Danny's attention, Danny looked up with apprehensive eyes. It was the moment of truth, he wished he'd made a will, he probably wasn't going to get out of this alive.

To the teen's surprise, the man didn't have a cold or angry expression on his face, in fact, if Danny didn't know any better, he'd say Mr Lancer was blushing! What was going on here? Surely the teacher wanted to 'discuss' his so called essay?

"I apologise Mr. Fenton," started Mr. Lancer, "I distinctly remember you handing in your essay to me at the end of last week but it appears that I have managed to misplace it over the week-end. I was not able to mark it so you have not received a grade," By now Danny was openly gaping at the man, "I apologise once again and – Mr. Fenton could you _please_ close that mouth of yours before you start catching flies?"

"O-o f course Mr. Lancer" Danny managed to stammer out before promptly snapping his mouth shut. Mr. Lancer cleared his throat again.

"Now as I was saying," continued the man, "I will not ask you to redo the essay as it was my fault that the work could not be marked, instead, I shall give you a default A for the assignment, is that clear Mr. Fenton?"

Danny nodded his head vigorously, "Yes Mr. Lancer, thank you!"

The rest of the lesson continued as normal but Danny was still in shock when the bell rang for dismissal. He left school, his face still contorted in shock, without bothering to wait up for Sam or Tucker – they would understand.

* * *

Mr. Lancer slumped in his chair as all the students left for home. The worst was over – he hoped. In the end, he's decided not to tell Daniel that he'd read the essay, it would be easier, for now, to wait and see what happens. If the need ever came to be, he would reveal the truth to the boy, just not right now.

The teacher was about to pack his back and leave when a certain immature adult slammed his classroom door open.

"OH L-MAAAAN!!" exclaimed Kain, Mr. Lancer groaned.

"Don't call me that!" yelled the balding teacher.

Kain pouted, "I just came here to give my good OLD friend, L-man, some moral support."

Mr. Lancer was surrounded by an aura of gloom, "He…called…me…OLD!"

"You're so sensitive about your age!" laughed the other man.

"Maybe I wouldn't be if you stopped jabbing at my age!"

"But that's no fun!" whined Kain. Mr. Lancer just growled once more in the other man's direction.

"Anyway, how'd the lesson with the dreaded Essay of Doom go?" asked Kain.

Mr. Lancer sighed, "I didn't tell the student that I'd read it."

Kain sent him a concerned look, "Are you sure it's a good idea to put this confrontation off?"

The English teacher was puzzled by this, "What do you mean?"

"This essay must have had something important in it if it's troubled you so much so you can't just let this go. You're going to have to talk with this student sooner or later, I would've thought sooner would have been better than later," explained the unusually serious History teacher.

Mr. Lancer slammed his head on the table.

"I swear, slamming heads on a table is a new trend…You're not trying to be 'hip' again are you L-man?"

"Shut up, Kain, just shut up."

* * *

When he got home, Danny immediately rushed up to his room and dumped his bag on his bed. He then went on to smothering his face with his pillow while he screamed his frustrations out. If Mr. Lancer didn't have his essay then who in the name of those evil banana peels had it? With his luck it'd be someone so devious that they'd post it on one of those popular sites like Mypsace or Facebook or something…

He was so screwed.

"Danny! It's dinner time sweetie!" yelled his mother from downstairs. Mmm…dinner….dinner was the solution to everything.

* * *

Sam and Tucker were worried about Danny, their friend was knee deep in trouble (again) and there appeared to be nothing they could do about it. They didn't know what to do apart from offer moral support. They wanted to do more to help their friend, they wanted to be useful.

But what on earth could they do?

"Hey Tucker," said Sam.

"Yeah?"

"Got any ideas?"

"Well…I do have one," replied the technology obsessed teen.

Sam looked at him eagerly, "What is it?"

"We could always break into Mr. Lancer's house and steal the essay."

Sam stared at her friend, was he seriously suggesting this?

"I'm seriously suggesting this."

Okay, so maybe he was.

Sam threw a pillow at the boy. "What makes you think we can break into someone's house? A teacher's house no less!"

Tucker threw the pillow back, "Not us, Danny, he could just phase through the walls, find the essay and phase back out with it."

"It's still breaking and entering!"

"Technically, nothing's being broken!"

"ARRGGHH!"

The argument continued for a few minutes until Sam finally relented and decided it was for their friend's own good.

"Fine, we'll ask Danny if he'll do it tomorrow," stated the Goth.

"Speaking of Danny," started Tucker, "why are we having this sleepover without him?"

"Because he never showed up," pouted Sam, "I bet he's feasting on some damn chocolate instead of hanging with us – AGAIN!"

* * *

In Danny's house, Danny could be found stuffing his face with some sweet sweet chocolate – that was until he sneezed and ended up throwing his chocolate out the window.

"Damn those people! Why did they have to think about me right then? WHY? The chocolate was so good!"


	6. Chapter 5

Afraid – Chapter Five

* * *

Lancer sighed as he drearily picked at his spaghetti. He had read Daniel's essay on Friday and now it was Tuesday evening but he _still_ hadn't spoken to the boy about it. It was quite shameful, really; as a teacher, he was supposed to support his students but all he was doing right now was avoiding this one.

Another sigh escaped his lips.

The man, deciding that he just wasn't going eat any more of his meal, picked up the plate and scraped the remains into the bin. It was a waste, he knew, but it wasn't like he even had a pet to give it to. Lancer haphazardly placed the dish into the sink before settling himself in an armchair. Perhaps Kain would have some advice for him. The teacher picked up his phoned and dialed the other man's number. After a couple of rings, Kain's familiar voice rang through the receiver.

"_Hello? May I ask who's speaking?_"

Lancer almost chuckled at the greeting. His friend was only this polite on the phone. Probably because he didn't have caller ID and didn't want to offend a stranger.

"It's just me, Kain."

The teacher could practically hear the other man's widening grin.

"_L-man! I knew you wouldn't be able to resist calling your best friend slash romance adviser! So, what's the deal?_"

"Don't call me that, Kain, we've already been through this."

Kain chuckled good-naturedly. "_You know you love it_."

"No. No I don't. In any case, I'm calling because I need some advice."

"_Oh?_" Lancer guessed that the man had raised an eyebrow. It was something he would do. "_Women troubles?_"

"What?! No! Is that all you ever think about?"

"_Women? Definitely. Well, women and you of course_."

"Don't even joke about that, Kain, it's disturbing. You're too old to make such remarks."

"_You're so cruel to me, L-man_." He was definitely pouting. Lancer could feel it. "_So, what is the problem?_"

Sighing, Lancer began to recite the next installment of his tale.

"_Wait, so you still haven't talked to him? This isn't like you, L-man. You don't procrastinate. It just isn't done_."

"I know that, Kain. What I want is some advice!"

"_What kind of advice? I'm not sure if there's much I can give you. I mean, I don't know what was on the essay and I don't know who wrote it so there's not a lot I can do._"

"How about how to confront them?"

"_What about talking to the parents first?_"

"Somehow I don't think that'll work in this case…"

"_For goodness sake, Luke, just talk to the kid then!_"

Kain was using his name instead of 'L-man'; he was annoyed. Lancer supposed that perhaps he _should_ just talk to Daniel. After all, he was going to have to eventually, even if he did talk to others first. He sighed for what seemed like the hundredth time that evening.

"Alright, Kain. I'll just do that…"

"…_Look, L-man, just find the right time to do it and everything will turn out alright_."

And then Kain hung up. Lancer stared at the phone.

"'Find the right time'? Just how am I supposed to do that…?"

* * *

When Friday arrived, Lancer was feeling tenser than he'd ever felt before (except for perhaps before his date with a woman that strangely resembled a cricket, but that was another matter entirely). He still hadn't built up the courage to confront Daniel about the essay and it didn't look like the situation would be resolving itself anytime soon. Things weren't looking too good and it would probably get worse if he left the predicament alone for the weekend. Sighing, the teacher glanced up at the classroom clock. He had ten minutes until the bell went – not exactly a large amount of time.

As the students began shuffling into the classroom, Lancer wasn't surprised to see that Daniel had yet to arrive. He was going to be late. Again. That meant detention for the teenager…Wait. If he managed to avoid giving other students detention that day then he would have the perfect opportunity to talk to Daniel without interruption. It was a last minute plan but it was simple enough and the man was pretty sure it wasn't illegal to do such a thing. Resolving to go through with the plan, Lancer began his lesson.

"Today we're going to be looking at the different techniques used in media – more specifically, advertising. Maybe this will help you stop being coerced into buying useless products like the rest of the teenage population…and the majority of the adult population too."

A couple of muffled laughs were heard after he said this. Lancer smiled slightly; at least he could still amuse some people.

A movement in the corner of his eye grabbed his attention. He sighed in exasperation before speaking, "Mr. Fenton, we can all see you sneaking into the room. Take your seat and report to me after school for detention. This is the fourth time you've been late to my lesson this week."

Daniel groaned before trudging over to his desk and laying his head on its surface.

"This isn't naptime, Mr. Fenton. I would appreciate it if you could at least try to pay attention to what I'm saying, even if it is mindless drivel to you."

Lancer inwardly winced at the faint blush that followed the teenager's classmates' laughter. Perhaps in trying to act normal he was being too harsh on the teen. Despite this, the teacher continued with the lesson - it was too late to take back the statement anyway.

Danny was nervous – really nervous. Mr. Lancer was being particularly strict with him today which wasn't a good sign. Oh he really wished the Box Ghost could've picked a better time to annoy him. He was guessing that the continuous late arrivals were getting on his teacher's nerves. This wasn't good for him, especially if by some stroke of misfortune (on his part) Mr. Lancer had found the misplaced essay.

When the bell rang, signalling the end of the English lesson, Danny couldn't have been more relieved. He practically sprinted out of the classroom. When Sam and Tucker managed to catch up with him, they found him leaning his head on his locker.

"Dude, what's eating you?"

Danny lifted his head up an glanced at Tucker.

"It's nothing, I'm just paranoid about that essay…"

Tucker's eyes seemed to glint as he out away his PDA (for once), "Speaking of which, Sam and I have a plan to get it back from Lancer."

Danny groaned and leant back on his locker before speaking, "That's the problem. Mr. Lancer lost it."

Both Sam and Tucker looked taken aback by this announcement. They looked at each other and then back at their friend.

"But if Mr. Lancer hasn't got it, who does?" Sam asked in a worried tone.

"That's what I'm worried about!"

Tucker and Sam shared a look again; they hadn't missed the desperate tone in their friend's voice.

"Are you absolutely sure he's lost it?" Tucker wanted to confirm it before anyone did something rash.

"Yes! He told me so himself!"

"…Maybe he was lying."

Danny paused, that was always a possibility. But why would Mr. Lancer lie to him about that? What would he gain from it? The halfa groaned and banged his head on the locker again.

Sam was suddenly stuck by an idea, "Hey, you have detention with him after school, right?" Danny nodded in answer. "Why don't you ask him if he's found it? And if he gets suspicious, just tell him you worked hard on it and don't want it to go to waste."

Danny pondered on this, he supposed it could work. Actually, it was a great idea! He could look for signs that his teacher was lying if he said no and well…if he said yes, they could think about it then. Feeling much more optimistic, Danny grabbed Sam in a hug.

"That's great! Thanks Sam!"

And then he realised what he had just done.

"No problem, Danny…"

The two teens turned away slightly, blushing. Tucker just laughed behind a hand.

"Lovebirds…"

"Shut up, Tucker." Both Sam and Danny protested the same time.

* * *

When the detention finally arrived, Danny was feeling much less optimistic. What was he thinking? How could this plan work? Maybe he'd been blinded by the fact that it was Sam who came up with the plan…No. Best not to delve into that.

Lancer, surprisingly, arrived for the detention after Danny. He was surprised to see the teenager there on time. He wasn't sure whether he should he glad that his student seemed to be getting his timing under control or annoyed by the fact that this meant he had to confront him sooner.

"I'm only going to keep you here for half-an-hour. Believe it or not, I do have plans for this evening."

Danny couldn't bring himself to smile at that.

Lancer settled himself down at his desk, "Now, Mr. Fenton." He started. "I have something I want to discuss with you…"

Danny felt a foreboding feeling building up in the pit of his stomach. He didn't think Mr. Lancer was going to want to talk about video games or even his unexplained late arrivals. When the teacher took a familiar sheet of paper out of desk drawer, Danny knew he wasn't going to be leaving the room without revealing something.

"I want you to tell me what it is you meant by what you wrote in the essay…"

No, Danny thought, he definitely wouldn't be leaving the room with his secret unscathed.

* * *

Well, I finally updated. It's not a great chapter, I know, but I hope you'll forgive me. Thank you for the reviews. I greatly appreciated them. I've also made a few changes to previous chapters in the hopes of improving the quality of writing. I don't think it really worked though...


	7. Chapter 6

Afraid – Chapter Six

* * *

"I want you to tell me what it is you meant by what you wrote in the essay…"

The moment he saw Daniel's shoulders tense and his back straighten, Lancer knew that he'd asked the right question. He felt a slight twinge of guilt at the boy's uncomfortable appearance; despite how it may seem, he didn't take pleasure in tormenting his students. It needed to be done, though. That essay…there was something horribly wrong going on! He could feel it. So when he noticed the tightening of Daniel's hands on his legs, Lancer ignored it and continued on.

"I apologize for lying to you earlier but somehow I didn't think you would appreciate me bringing it up in class." The boy just stiffened even more. "I wasn't lying about the A, though." A shocked glance. "It was a well written essay: excellent structure, articulated language – it was good. It deserved an A, maybe a high B."

The boy began to bite his lip. Lancer wasn't sure if it was due to nervousness or contemplation. He cleared his throat and reached down to his briefcase. He picked it up, placed it on the table and opened it. The 'click' that accompanied it seemed awkwardly loud in the silence of the room. He carefully picked the essay out of the pile of sheets and closed the briefcase once more. He moved it to the floor. There was still silence, only the soft humming of the lights above them was the exception. He pushed the paper towards Daniel. The boy glanced at him. Lancer nodded and Daniel tentatively reached for the paper before snatching it away. Lancer watched as he scrunched it up and stuffed it into his pocket, the boy never taking his eyes off him.

"I don't want to push you, Daniel." The boy didn't say anything. "I don't want to force you to tell me anything you're not ready to, but I'm…concerned."

"…Concerned about what?"

Lancer was just glad the boy was talking. "What you were trying to say in that essay. Those fears…they're not typical for a teenager, Daniel." The boy was tensing up again, not good. "You said you fear yourself – why? You said you fear becoming evil – why? The others…they're not quite as atypical, but they still don't seem to suit you." Lancer sighed and rubbed his forehead. "What I'm trying to say is: you've given me these fears but you've explained them so vaguely. The only thing I can take from your essay is that there's something going on around you that shouldn't be. And I don't like it."

The boy was fidgeting. Lancer sat back in his chair. He wasn't sure how to progress. It was true, he was beginning to suspect that Daniel was involved in something no teenager should be, but he didn't know what. He needed Daniel to tell him that.

"I just want you to explain it to me, Daniel."

"I wrote it as a joke."

What?

"Come again?"

"The essay…I wasn't being serious. I thought it would be funny to write about some weird fears, just to shock you. I didn't think it would get so out of hand." Surely Daniel didn't expect him to believe this? "I was joking."

"I don't think you were."

The boy chuckled nervously. "Oh come on, Mr. Lancer, you know me. My life's too boring for fears like that. I was just trying to mess with you."

It was plausible. Daniel had never really seemed to like him, which was understandable considering the amount of time they had spent together in detention. It was entirely possible that Daniel _had_ just written the essay to annoy Lancer. But he didn't think it was true. The boy was too nervous. That way he'd reacted before – the tensing, the fidgeting – it just didn't fit with Daniel's explanation. The most he would get for annoying a teacher like this would be a reprimand; the essay didn't have to be true. There was no reason for Daniel to be so nervous.

Unless he had something to hide.

"You're not in trouble, Daniel, there's no need to lie."

"I'm not lying!" He was fidgeting more now. "Honestly, Mr. Lancer, there's nothing to worry about. I was just being silly."

Lancer sighed. This was getting nowhere; Daniel obviously wasn't going to talk. He glanced at the clock. They had twenty minutes left. He leaned forward in his chair and rested his chin on his hands. He looked at Daniel.

"What are your real fears then?"

"What?"

"If your essay was a joke, what are you real fears?"

The boy didn't answer immediately, he just stared at Lancer until finally…

"Spiders. I'm scared of spiders."

"No you're not. Just last week you were the one to take that spider outside during English."

"Old people."

Lancer would have laughed if he wasn't so concerned about the boy. "That's a lie too. If you were afraid of old people you would've run screaming from me by now."

"Banana peels?"

Perhaps Lancer had misjudged Daniel. Maybe there wasn't some hidden intelligence in him. "The fact that you said that as a question tells me that, no, you are not afraid of banana peels."

Daniel was rubbing his wrists now. Perhaps it was a nervous habit, something significant? He didn't offer any more fears. It was a bit redundant to anyway; he'd already proven that he was lying.

"Like I said before, Daniel," he started, causing the boy to look up at him, "I'm not going to push you." The boy looked relieved. "_However_, I _would_ appreciate it if you would explain to me what's going on." He raised a hand to stop Daniel's protests. "I don't want you to lie to me Daniel. I know that something's going on. You don't have to tell me now, but I trust that you'll come to me when the time is right. Actually, it doesn't even have to be me. It can be anyone responsible. Your parents, your sister, even Mr. McGellen if worse comes to worst. Just please, Daniel, please tell _somebody_."

The boy was staring at him in silence. He glanced up at the clock again. They still had fifteen minutes but it wasn't really worth it. Daniel still wasn't talking. He picked up his briefcase and stood up. He could feel Daniel watching him as he walked over to his jacket and pulled it on. Just as he was adjusting the garment, he turned round and spoke to the boy.

"I'm not going to keep you any longer, Daniel. It would be pointless. You're free to go."

The boy was up in a flash and out of the room before Lancer could even button up his jacket. He blinked. He hadn't been aware that Daniel could move so fast. Dismissing this, he picked up his briefcase once more and headed towards the door. He gave the classroom once last glance before switching off the light and locking the door behind him. As he walked down the corridor towards the exit, he thought over the conversation they had had. He was still sure that something was going on and he wasn't going to wait around for Daniel to approach him – he didn't think that would be happening any time soon. But just because Daniel wasn't going to talk to him didn't mean he couldn't observe Daniel. Maybe if he watched him for long enough, Lancer would be able to work out what was going on?

Oh God, he was glad Kain couldn't hear his thoughts. Watching? Observing? Kain would have a field day…

* * *

Danny wasn't quite sure what had just happened. It all seemed so…surreal. When Lancer had asked him about the essay, he had expected to be interrogated until he gave up his secret. But he hadn't been. Lancer had been lenient. He had gotten away with giving almost nothing away – only that he _did_ have a secret. He supposed that maybe he had overreacted when he'd assumed that Lancer had worked out all his secrets. Thinking back, the essay _had_ been rather vague. He had never actually mentioned ghosts or fighting. Maybe he would be able to get away without Lancer ever finding out the truth.

He actually found it rather odd that Lancer had let him go so quickly. Moreover, the man had actually seemed concerned about whatever it was he thought Danny was going through. It didn't make much sense. He'd always thought Lancer only cared about the jocks in the school, not loners like himself. Maybe he was faking it? No…it had seemed so real. Maybe he _should_ tell Lancer the truth then, it didn't seem like he was going to condemn Danny for it – it was more like he wanted to help.

_But he's not expecting me to admit to being a half-ghost, is he?_

That was right. It wasn't a normal kind of secret he was talking about. Would Lancer still want to help if he found out about Danny's…abnormality? It wasn't exactly _typical_ of a teenager, was it?

_But he's already told me that he knows it's not typical._

Being half-ghost was more than just 'not typical' though – it was downright freaky. Scary, even.

_Lancer's sensible, he won't freak out straight away._

But he'd never been a big fan of ghosts, had he?

Danny groaned and instead concentrated on getting home. This was giving him a headache.

* * *

Jazz Fenton was worried about her brother. She always worried about him, but that was just her sisterly instincts kicking in. For the past few days, however, it seemed as though something had really been bothering her brother. He seemed jittery, jumpy. Whenever he thought someone wasn't looking, his eyes would glaze over and a frown would appear on his face. He was probably thinking about something important to him; something that was causing him problems. The darkening smudges under his eyes indicated that he wasn't getting enough sleep but she couldn't tell if that was because there were so many ghosts or if it was because of this thing bugging him. He looked paler too, but that had started long before this nervous behavior. She wondered why she hadn't tried to do something before. Well…she _had_, but it had been small things: giving him a lift to school so that he could sleep on the way; distracting their parents so he could get away; sneaking extra food to him when she could because really, he wasn't eating enough. Jazz was very worried so when Danny came in late, his forehead wrinkled and dragging his bag behind him, she didn't let him retreat to his room.

"Danny…" she started, just to get his attention. "Could you come here for a sec?"

He gave her a confused look but complied and took a seat at the dining table. He continued to look at her curiously.

"Is there…" she didn't know how to start, how to make it seem like she wasn't trying to be nosy, be a parent. "Has anything been bothering you lately?" It sounded too parental, intruding.

He scowled, "No Jazz, there's nothing wrong. I don't feel depressed or neglected –"

"No!" she interrupted, that wasn't what she meant at all. "It's just you seem more tired than usual and you've been more jumpy." She paused. "Sam and Tucker say you haven't spoken to them since Friday…"

He looked shocked at that. She wondered if he'd even realized what he'd been doing.

"I haven't…? I could've sworn…" he sounded so confused that it made Jazz wonder if maybe she should've just given him a chocolate bar and let him go to bed.

"Danny…"

He gave her a tight smile and waved off her concerns. "Don't worry Jazz, it's just some school stuff – nothing to do with you-know-what." He then picked up his bag and ran up the stairs before she could respond.

He said it was just school stuff; Jazz wasn't sure whether she should believe him. It was obviously bothering him a lot and that _smile_…she was seeing it far too often lately.

"Danny…why don't you trust me anymore?"

Jazz was worried about her little brother but it didn't seem like he was going to tell her anything.

* * *

He hadn't spoken to Sam and Tucker since Friday? The detention had been on Friday. It was Tuesday now…

He seriously hadn't spoken to them?

He could've sworn he'd met them in the Nasty Burger on Sunday. Or was that _last _Sunday…?

Danny groaned, he hadn't realized things had gotten so bad. He hadn't realized that this whole thing with Mr. Lancer was affecting him so much. It was true that he hadn't been getting much sleep but that was because of the ghosts, not Mr. Lancer. Speaking of sleep…he was feeling really quite tired. On the way home from school he'd had to take care of Skulker. Thinking about it, he hadn't even been able to muster up enough energy for their usual banter, let alone speak to his friends. He hoped they weren't too mad…

Danny left his thoughts there as he felt himself begin to drift into sleep.

* * *

Sorry this is so late...Thank you to all those who reviewed. Thank you especially to X-wingPilot52 who pointed out how I could improve this. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please point out if I've missed any typos.


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